Book excerpt: Under pressure to prepare a quick, nutritious dinner? Under pressure to reduce your fat and cholesterol? When the pressure's on for a great vegetarian meal on the run, turn to Lorna Sass's second guide to the safe and delicious use of the pressure cooker. This collection of recipes dispels the myth of the difficult-to-use pressure cooker -- which is in fact easier and faster than the microwave -- and shows how vegetarian fare can be vibrantly colorful and full of flavor! Bursting with rich soups, hearty stews and casseroles, zesty curries, and flavor-packed chilis, Great Vegetarion Cooking Under Pressure brings together over 150 recipes, most with cooking times of under ten minutes. Arrive in Provence with a two-minute soupe au pistou laced with garlic and fennel; serve up an elegant zucchini bisque with tomatoes and fresh basil in just five minutes; or prepare a polenta good enough for a palazzo in only ten minutes. There are also scores of perfect vegetable side dish recipes, with an instructive chart detailing how to prepare everything from artichokes to zucchini. Lorna Sass devotes special attention to grains -- a vital part of the healthy diet -- and shows how brown rice, millet, couscous, quinoa, and bulgur can turn from gourmet store items into staples of your pantry. Whether it's Risotto with Broccoli Rabe and White Beans in five minutes, or Mediterranean Vegetable Couscous in just six, these recipes lock in delicious nutrition without tying up precious time. There's even a section about the splendid desserts that are possible with the pressure cooker, like Banana Pudding Cake and Pumpkin Bread Pudding. Filled with informative sections about the equipment, ingredients, and language of pressure cooking, suggestions for theme menus, and mail-order resources, this compendium of high-quality, high-fiber, low-fat (and mostly cholesterol-free) dishes will become an essential guide for today's bustling cook.